(I sat down the other day with a few hours before work and decided to sort out my collection for rotation. It ended up being an emotional experience. I’m gonna post this here as an optimistic perspective amidst all the doomsaying)
As I sat down to sort out the rotating cards from my collection, I wasn’t prepared for how large the piles were going to be. I started with HB, and as I separated the cards from the first two cycles, I was inundated with memories and an overwhelming nostalgia. Ash, Eli 1.0, Eve Campaign, Project Vitruvius… these are cards I have sleeved and desleeved for years, cards I have rezzed and trashed hundreds of times, subroutines I have clicked and paid through since I started the game. Less common cards joined the fray: Viper, Green Level Clearance, Janus 1.0… but the memories continued. Even amidst the jank and fodder, there were few cards that I hadn’t shuffled at some point, few cards that hadn’t come to define a small part of the game I loved at first run, Android Netrunner.
I continued into the other factions, the cards towering higher than I had expected. I felt a twinge of sadness to see Himitsu-Bako join the pile, an unassuming barrier that was the staple of Jinteki gear-check not too long ago, and one which I likely will never rez again. The stacks of rotating cards became narratives unto themselves: the infamous RP and its lackeys Sundew and Tsurugi, who caused me hours of grief while I agonizingly climbed the learning curve of their weaknesses. Caprice Nisei, who carried an entire faction on her back for years. Every successful and failed psi-game was contained in this single card, every narrow victory and crushing defeat as palms were opened and credits revealed.
Every faction was full of memories, from the satisfaction of over-advancing an Atlas, to my early ventures in Criminal with the help of Mr. Li. My relationship with the game has been sporadic at times, most recently having endured a half-year break-up; but digging through each and every card in my collection served to remind me of all the fun I have had with Netrunner over the years. It has been the catalyst to friendships, and the predator of early-morning hours, while I lay sleepless in bed, speculating over new cards and hypothetical synergies. Most of all, Netrunner connected me with a global community, a community of dynamic, interesting, and genuinely good people.
It would be easy to write a retrospective of each and every card, but I will leave that to someone else. What I want to stress is the power that Netrunner has. As I’m sure each and everyone one of you will discover, even the humblest of cards have affected you in ways that cannot be quantified. While I was sad to file many of these cards away, in a box now labeled Rotation, the process was also therapeutic, and filled me with an uncharacteristic optimism. The global community has been discouraged as of late, but I think rotation is the perfect time to remind ourselves how great this game is, and how much more it has to offer. This is our first chance to really see how our game evolves and adapts within the LCG model. Despite its relative youth, Netrunner is already a tapestry of narratives, from the early years dominated by glacier and tag’n’bag, to the tumultuous metas and game-breaking cards of recent years. Those who have been around the longest should be the most enthusiastic; after all, what other card game can provide so many memories, emotions, controversies, and arguments? I don’t think any game comes close, and personally I’m looking forward to the coming months with the same excitement I had showing up to my first LGS. I encourage you to rifle through your collection the next chance you get. You’ll be surprised at just how alive this game really is.
This game is good, y’all! Embrace the change.